Expect miracles at 5K Run/Walk Oct. 5 in Clark

Clark residents Ron and Sheree Pask, front, and committee members work on last minute details for the Oct. 5 Miracles for Myeloma 5K Run/Walk in Oak Ridge Park. The charity event will be held rain or shine.

Miracles can happen. That’s what Sheree Pask of Clark thinks, anyway. She is a survivor of a rare form of cancer known as Myeloma. Because she is thankful to the friends and family as well as doctors and nurses who helped her in her miraculous recovery from the disease with two stem cell transplants and chemotherapy, she and a friend from Westfield are sponsoring the Miracles for Myeloma 5K Run/Walk. The event is scheduled for Saturday, Oct. 5, in Oak Ridge Park, Clark and will be held rain or shine.

The course, staged entirely within the Union County Park in Clark, will be run on paved paths, is USATF certified, and people of all ages are encouraged to participate in this community-wide fundraiser.

Multiple Myeloma is a cancer of plasma cells which attacks and destroys bone. The two founders of the race are Mrs. Pask, a teacher at a Westfield nursery school, and Westfield resident Gina Klemm, whose brother Frank Guarino died of the disease in 2012.

Entry fees are $30 per walker or runner. Children’s fees are $15.Runners may also register at the door. For pre-registered participants, T-shirts will be distributed. Awards will be given for best times in various categories. All proceeds will be donated to the International Myeloma Foundation (IMF).

Registration will open at 7:30 a.m., with the race officially starting at 9 a.m.
“I am excited that the event is coming together,” Mrs. Pask said last night at a Clark Kiwanis Club meeting where she is a longtime member. The Kiwanis Club and their sponsored high school club, the ALJ Key Club from Johnson High School will be on hand to offer support for the race. There will be tattoos and special features for children who attend.

Featured that Saturday will be a memorial path where maroon and white balloons will be tied to placards with names of people being honored by a donation. Maroon is designated for patients living with Myeloma and white in remembrance of those who have passed on from the disease.